[Jeff Pulera]

Hi Randy,

I’d say that theoretically, 1080p60 should look awesome! However, we need to consider display technology as well. What formats can the intended display device handle? Not just the screen, but playback unit? 1080p60 is NOT supported by the Blu-ray spec, while 720p60 is, but again, what about the monitor/projector?

Contact the techs in charge of displaying this stuff and see what they want/need. A lot of this frame rate discussion comes down to personal taste, or aesthetics, but some technical considerations play a part as well and can’t be overlooked.

I’d say there is no benefit to shooting 60p for interviews, as 60p is more for fast action/sports. So looking at a 1080i or 1080p30/720p30 scenario. With 1080 formats, you have more pixels and could therefore do some re-framing without quality loss, meaning shoot 1080 but edit in a 720p project and you can zoom/pan somewhat in post production then using the “extra” resolution available.

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

Hi Randy,

I don’t have the HMC-150, but have shot with the HMC-40, and am just going to comment in regards to the different formats, which apply to any camera really.

1080i is interlaced, and therefore provides smooth motion by recording 60 separate fields each second, at 1/60 second increments, to create 30 frames per second, or 29.97 for the purists (note that NTSC is also 29.97 interlaced, so 1080i is a good source if converting to DVD or broadcasting). 1080i is also the highest resolution at 1920×1080, versus 720p being 1280×720 (some cameras can also record anamorphic 1080i at 1440×1080, still a higher resolution than 720p).

720p is always a progressive shooting mode. There are no fields; rather, complete frames are recorded at the prescribed frame rate, for instance 24, 30, or 60fps depending on record modes offered (25p available to PAL users).

24p is generally for making “films” or wedding-type work, where the “film look” is desired. Due to the low frame rate, pans or fast motion can appear choppy, so avoid 24p unless specifically wanting that film look.

Web video is always progressive, since computer displays are non-interlaced. So if shooting content destined for the web only, then 720p30 can be a great choice, keeping the workflow progressive throughout and avoiding any interlacing issues.

720p60 is great for fast action (sports) recording and also offers better results for slow-motion replay due to the higher frame rate being recorded (shoot 60p, but edit 30p and get perfect 50% slow mo for instance).

Some cameras also offer 1080p modes, so getting the highest resolution, and progressive recording. Really up to you, no right or wrong necessarily – aesthetics play a big part. Do some samples, going through the entire workflow through delivery medium and see what looks best for your needs.

If there are other techs involved with the display end of things, ask them if they have a preference or requirement in mind as well, as you will want to provide them with a compatible format of course.

Thanks

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

Hi Linda,

Let’s back up a bit, as I think the thread is going off target perhaps. What does your customer require for delivery? 99% of the time it is going to be a standard DVD format. Works in the DVD player in the training rooms, in computers, at home, you name it. You mentioned you are new at HD production, so the usual workflow is to shoot HD, edit HD, but then deliver a DVD, which is standard definition (widescreen), as is compatible with all DVD players so the widest audience can view it.

If you want “HD on DVD”, what you really need do to is author to Blu-ray disc, but then it can only be viewed on Blu-ray players, so limiting the audience. Or make some type of custom “multi-media” experience on disc, but that’s another story.

There is no problem putting 2 hours of training video on a single DVD, with menus.

If I’m misunderstanding your request, I apologize. If you are the same Linda from WI that is a customer, please call me and I can assist with workflow questions.

Thanks

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

Hi Tom,

Curious – your source clips are all SD, but you are exporting to HD. What is the destination for these vids? You may be losing some quality by upscaling if you don’t need to. The 1024×576 setting is the square-pixel version of SD widescreen, as matches two of your source clips.

Thanks

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

Hi Rowby,

If you want to do some compositing in AE, then the QT Animation codec would probably be a higher quality than Matrox, but at the expense of larger files. The reason I mentioned Matrox is because I use their hardware with Premiere editing, and the codec looks pretty nice and the handy thing about the “MPEG-2 I-Frame HD + Alpha” version is that third-party animations can be rendered to that codec with transparency, and then will playback smoothly in realtime in Premiere. Great for animated overlays and wipes such as those from Digital Juice. Just render to Matrox, drop into timeline, and no render needed!

Thanks

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

Hi Rowby,

I checked the instructions you referenced and there is no mention of any resolution setting, since that is up to the user and will vary. In the Export settings, under the VIDEO tab, you will find places to set the resolution, frame rate, and pixel aspect ratio to suit your needs. It probably defaults to “DV NTSC” sizing. If using HDV footage, then you likely need the 1440×1080, 29.97, with 1.33 pixel aspect. Usually Upper Field First unless using Progressive footage.

What are you doing with the export? Is it for your own use, or to give to someone else? Matrox has a nice codec that includes alpha channel, can be downloaded here – https://www.matrox.com/video/en/support/windows/vfw_software_codecs/downloads/softwares/version1.0/build33/

Note that system must have Matrox codecs installed for playback, so if sharing, then maybe not the best choice, but great for your own use.

Thanks

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

720p is always progressive, not sure why it would even give you an option for upper or lower field. Any time you are encoding for the web or computer viewing, you ALWAYS want Progressive, since computer displays are not interlaced.

Change FIELDS to NONE, that should do it!

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

Hi Kelly,

I’ve seen it stated over and over on every forum that PAL DVD players all play NTSC DVDs. However, I’ve never seen it stated that the DVD must be 23.98…that said, it is understandable that a 24fps source might convert better to 25fps PAL than starting from 29.97, so Eric may be on to something there.

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

I use the FILL LEFT and FILL RIGHT audio effects. Use the Razor tool to isolate sections of the audio clip that have the interference, then apply the filter to that area so you are only hearing the “good” channel (on both L and R outputs). Use the Audio Crossfade transition at the cuts to avoid pops and to blend in the edit.

This is not the “only way” or the “best way”, it works for me though

Thanks

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[Jeff Pulera]

Hi Tom,

We’re going to need some details before anyone can help. Please share the following –

Format of SOURCE video, incl. frame rate, for instance “AVCHD 1080i 29.97”

Editing Sequence settings used in Premiere

Export settings in AME

If you can post screen grabs of any of this, very helpful

Thanks

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers